Novocastra HD was developed to meet the needs of pathologists and histologists, in terms of menu, diagnostic confidence and workflow. This new 'Highly Definitive' range was created following extensive global market research on customer preferences, combined with the results of a comprehensive competitive evaluation* of each antibody by NordiQC. The Novocastra HD menu therefore represents antibodies with independently qualified performance, each available in a range of new sizes and formats aligned to laboratory workloads.

"When it comes to patient diagnosis, we know that excellence in staining quality isn't an option - it's an essential requirement," says Arnd Kaldowski, President of Leica Biosystems. "We ensured the optimized performance of each and every product and have compared performance on BOND with other leading clones in the market on competitive IHC stainers. The new Novocastra HD range represents our new trusted standard in the selection of high performing antibodies."

The Novocastra HD range will be available for sale in the USA and EU from August 2012, commencing with the breast pathology menu. Leica Microsystems plans to release a further nine disease specific ranges in 2012 and 2013.

About Leica Microsystems

Leica Microsystems is a world leader in microscopes and scientific instruments. Founded as a family business in the nineteenth century, the company's history was marked by unparalleled innovation on its way to becoming a global enterprise.

Its historically close cooperation with the scientific community is the key to Leica Microsystems' tradition of innovation, which draws on users' ideas and creates solutions tailored to their requirements. At the global level, Leica Microsystems is organized in four divisions, all of which are among the leaders in their respective fields: the Life Science Division, Industry Division, Biosystems Division and Medical Division.

Leica Microsystems' Biosystems Division, also known as Leica Biosystems, offers histopathology laboratories the most extensive product range with appropriate products for each work step in histology and for a high level of productivity in the working processes of the entire laboratory.

The company is represented in over 100 countries with 12 manufacturing facilities in 7 countries, sales and service organizations in 19 countries and an international network of dealers. The company is headquartered in Wetzlar, Germany.